As
the editor of Onsite Water Treatment (a sister publication that is still
available online ), I began to see how decentralization and efficiency are two sides of the same
coin: both offer solutions for reducing demand and controlling waste. Adding water reuse into the mix further
transforms decentralized water treatment into a powerful water conservation
tool.
As
a mentioned in a previous blog, decentralized water systems (both treatment and
delivery) can attack the problem of a shrinking water supply in two ways.
First, advances in water reuse now allow for pristine, potable-quality water to
be discharged back into the water supply, thereby curtailing the amount of water
“lost” to pollution. Secondly, when onsite water treatment is combined
with water reuse, we can insure that valuable drinking water is not squandered
on green lawns in the desert or urban carwashes.
In
a previous issue, we focused on Bullhead City, AZ’s decision to switch from
decentralized wastewater treatment to a centralized system that incorporates
water reuse. (Taking
the Bull by the Horns ) As the article points out, among the many
benefits resulting form this infrastructure overhaul is the added protection to
the increasingly threatened Colorado River basin.
While
municipal water treatment and delivery systems are most often associated with
centralized systems (like city sewers or water utilities), the refinement of
treatment technologies, ever-grander land development, and the push to “green”
public and private industry is sure to change all that: one day onsite water
treatment will go beyond the backyard septic system and bleed into the municipal
market where it can reach its full potential and vastly improve the management
and conservation of our water resources.